Representing Uganda abroad : He helps firms in knowledge management
Jun 29, 2010
VINCENT Kaabunga has always been fascinated by electronics and automation since childhood. <br>“I needed to figure out what made stuff click and find novel ways of applying technologies to everyday life. The gizmos at our home are a testament to that,†he says.
By Shamilla Kara
VINCENT Kaabunga has always been fascinated by electronics and automation since childhood.
“I needed to figure out what made stuff click and find novel ways of applying technologies to everyday life. The gizmos at our home are a testament to that,†he says.
Kaabunga is a Kenya-based knowledge management specialist in the integration of technologies for business communication, knowledge management and in project management.
At Chemonics International, an international development consulting firm, he is tasked with performing knowledge management and supporting market intelligence for the company’s partner organisations in 22 countries in the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa region.
He makes it possible for companies to leverage their knowledge for sustainability and competitiveness.
“I help them to develop their organisational strategies and to craft and implement a strategy for the creation and management of the institutional knowledge that shall be required for the organisation to achieve its objectives,†he says.
Kaabunga also assists regional private-sector trade associations to adopt strategic management approaches and processes from their customers’ points of view.
How he started his career
Kaabunga says when he started out, the ICT industry was in its infancy in Uganda.
“There was no formal training for one to acquire the skills and knowledge for the industry,†the certified information systems auditor says.
Kaabunga and a few friends then started sharing knowledge from their lessons among each other, something the group still does to-date.
Kaabunga was an industrial training intern under the mentorship of Apollo Mundua while at the university.
“I later worked part-time as a hostmaster for the dot ug domain under the guidance of Charles Musisi.â€
Education
After high school, Kaabunga studied Electrical Engineering at Makerere University in 2000 and did a masters degree in the management of information technology at the University of Pretoria.
Last year, he completed a strategic business management at the Stathmore Business School in Kenya.
On what he does
“It is a great job. With the breadth of organisations that I work with, there is always a new challenge. This is often a result of the different contexts in which issues,†he says.
He cherishes working as a team at a regional level, saying how gratified it feels when he sees the hard work bear fruit, especially when countries begin to work together.
“There is a combined regional competitive advantage to grow trade, both locally and internationally.â€
Beside enjoying motorsport and amateur photography, Kabuunga is driven by the love to help people solve problems, “which is probably why I’ve chosen to focus my work in the development arena,†he says.
Kaabunga is also driven by challenges, “When I take a task on, it must be completed.â€
The type of person he is in terms of work
“Determined,†he says.
Sounding off…
Kaabunga says he is encouraged by the advances that Uganda is making in the use of information technologies to support governance.
“I envision a time in the future when even those in the rural communities shall be able to enjoy the benefits that modern information technologies make towards the improvement of our livelihoods,†he adds.
Career highlights
Kabuunga started his career working with Computer Frontiers in Uganda as a lead technical manager in 2002, where he headed a team of network engineers and software developers to design and implement innovation information management solutions.
He then moved to Kenya two years later to work with International Development Consultants, as a communications specialist.
In 2005, he joined Chemonics International to oversee the design, implementation and management of regional trade intelligence systems, in information.
A year later, he became a knowledge management specialist working with regional private-sector trade associations to develop to develop their strategies and to grow and use their knowledge.
skara@newvision.co.ug
VINCENT Kaabunga has always been fascinated by electronics and automation since childhood.
“I needed to figure out what made stuff click and find novel ways of applying technologies to everyday life. The gizmos at our home are a testament to that,†he says.
Kaabunga is a Kenya-based knowledge management specialist in the integration of technologies for business communication, knowledge management and in project management.
At Chemonics International, an international development consulting firm, he is tasked with performing knowledge management and supporting market intelligence for the company’s partner organisations in 22 countries in the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa region.
He makes it possible for companies to leverage their knowledge for sustainability and competitiveness.
“I help them to develop their organisational strategies and to craft and implement a strategy for the creation and management of the institutional knowledge that shall be required for the organisation to achieve its objectives,†he says.
Kaabunga also assists regional private-sector trade associations to adopt strategic management approaches and processes from their customers’ points of view.
How he started his career
Kaabunga says when he started out, the ICT industry was in its infancy in Uganda.
“There was no formal training for one to acquire the skills and knowledge for the industry,†the certified information systems auditor says.
Kaabunga and a few friends then started sharing knowledge from their lessons among each other, something the group still does to-date.
Kaabunga was an industrial training intern under the mentorship of Apollo Mundua while at the university.
“I later worked part-time as a hostmaster for the dot ug domain under the guidance of Charles Musisi.â€
Education
After high school, Kaabunga studied Electrical Engineering at Makerere University in 2000 and did a masters degree in the management of information technology at the University of Pretoria.
Last year, he completed a strategic business management at the Stathmore Business School in Kenya.
On what he does
“It is a great job. With the breadth of organisations that I work with, there is always a new challenge. This is often a result of the different contexts in which issues,†he says.
He cherishes working as a team at a regional level, saying how gratified it feels when he sees the hard work bear fruit, especially when countries begin to work together.
“There is a combined regional competitive advantage to grow trade, both locally and internationally.â€
Beside enjoying motorsport and amateur photography, Kabuunga is driven by the love to help people solve problems, “which is probably why I’ve chosen to focus my work in the development arena,†he says.
Kaabunga is also driven by challenges, “When I take a task on, it must be completed.â€
The type of person he is in terms of work
“Determined,†he says.
Sounding off…
Kaabunga says he is encouraged by the advances that Uganda is making in the use of information technologies to support governance.
“I envision a time in the future when even those in the rural communities shall be able to enjoy the benefits that modern information technologies make towards the improvement of our livelihoods,†he adds.
Career highlights
Kabuunga started his career working with Computer Frontiers in Uganda as a lead technical manager in 2002, where he headed a team of network engineers and software developers to design and implement innovation information management solutions.
He then moved to Kenya two years later to work with International Development Consultants, as a communications specialist.
In 2005, he joined Chemonics International to oversee the design, implementation and management of regional trade intelligence systems, in information.
A year later, he became a knowledge management specialist working with regional private-sector trade associations to develop to develop their strategies and to grow and use their knowledge.
skara@newvision.co.ug